In the throes of a virus...

Oh my, this one is a doosey. I haven't had a virus this bad since 2004 when I had meningitis. This is really awful, the sorest throat I have had in memory, I don't want to swallow. Headache. Cough. Ears clogged and stuffed. Sinuses full. Ugh. After my shower I had to sit down to brush my teeth. I haven't eaten but two real meals in ten days, Gil is feeling better (he is the one who gave this to me!) and will feed me, but I have no will to eat. I am vaguely hungry and know I should eat, but have no energy to do so. I am trying to think of it as medicine, without fuel, can't get better. What a bother.

I actually ate breakfast, and after recovering from the shower, saw Tipper (That Brazen Squirrel that has been giving us all the problems) and one of her babies on the deck. Trouble and I went out to have a chat and take pictures. Trouble knows better than to chase her... Tipper has been known to jump onto cats who chase her and scare the jeebers out of them. She appears to have little fear of people either. Doesn't want you to get too near, but she will get pretty close. We had to put hardware cloth on our window screen to keep her out of our kitchen... we still haven't figured a way to stop her from eating through the screen door, so that has to stay closed til we get smarter. She is to be respected. Rodents are brainey. Good at puzzles. So far though, the up-armoured window is holding.

Dog Fox

Last night there was a fox outside my window barking so loud I thought he was right on my windowsill. I jumped up to look, and it was very dark, couldn't see a thing in the rain, but the coughing, sighing, barking, singing sounds continued several minutes. He must have been right below in our neighbour's yard... I don't think he would have climbed the fence to get into our yard... though from this picture in the tree (not mine) they are well capable of it. They are lovely creatures, verminous though they may be. He must have been a big dog fox, deepvoiced and brave to come so close. No paw prints this morning, but there were some things knocked over on the deck... hhhm, maybe he WAS right under my window!

My Dyeing Day

Oh it felt so very good to be dyeing again! I haven't done indigo in way too long. It is undoubtedly my fav natural dye, it is just magic! If you haven't seen an indigo pot, you really should... when you first pull the cloth out of the bucket it is a weasley yellow brown, not at all attractive. As the air hits it, and the oxygen reacts with it, the cloth begins to turn blue, slowly, then faster. As it passes through green it is still a bit sickly looking, but getting more interesting, but the richness of the blues as it developes its full color, ooh, lovely! One dip, light, two dips, darker, a linen/rayon blend shirt I had that had a stain I just couldn't get out got three dips and turned a deep rich blue that gave the true indigo its name. These pieces are samples for a dye class I will do later this month at G Street Fabrics in Falls Church VA. I will probably also make a wall hanging from some of them. I wanted to do something patriotic but couldn't get the reds together... now they all go! Overdyeing is a wonderful thing! Maybe another piece too, I am not sure. Unfortunately, one of the gloves had a hole in it. Ugh. Skin is protein, and indigo dyes protein very well.

I got more cleaning done too! I am actually able to see my whole floor now! That only leaves the table and desktops and the ledges underneath! I am making progress! EeHah!

Oh Please, Must You?

As I talked to my sister on Skype tonight, my kitty Trouble climbed up on the bookcase next to me and settled in for a nap, making himself comfy. Very comfy. After awhile, his head slithered off the pillow he sleeps on and wedged itself upside down on the shelf. When I tried to get the camera to get a shot, he somehow knew it and woke a little, then more and more and finally got up and stomped off in a huff. Pluleeze, can't a fellah sleep around here?

Not Creative, but Necessary

This weekend, I actually found the floor of my studio! Now, that doesn't mean it is empty, no, not yet, but we are moving in the right direction. I am determined to be done by the end of the month. I will be creative again, and do it in a nice and organized place. I still have too much stuff, not enough room, but it is getting better. I am going to take the rest of the year off teaching after this quartewr and develope fresh new classes for the new year. I am going to purge stuff and pare down activities and really try to get to what is important to me. I am not able to do everything. I have to figure out what I really want, what I can do, and what I must do to achieve it. Surprisingly, it is feeling good to get rid of things. Not some things, of course. Some things are hard. But on the whole I think I will benefit from slimming down on some of the stuff and commitments. I have an awful lot of interests, but I need to figure out what is really important. Anyway, here are some before and after photos.

Maryland Sheep and Wool, Day Two

Today was watch the dogs day! It was another very hot day, so I went to the first demo of the day, and sat and crocheted and drank lemonade. The shade was nice and the rain didn't happen, and the dogs had a couple of big rubber tubs of water waiting to cool them down... good dogs! The sheep were wary... and weary too. They didn't want to go where they were supposed to go, and didn't want to do what they were supposed to do, but then I can hardly blame them. Too hot! The nicest thing about the day was that I met up with an old friend I hadn't seen in a couple years, and we had a wonderful day together, just wandering the festival and looking at all the various breeds of sheep and kinds of goodies that are available. It was a good day!

Maryland Sheep and Wool, Day One

Today was primarily a day for seeing the sheep. I really am not in the market for anything this year, beyond the show teeshirt and cd, and I will deliver a fleece tomorrow to be carded, but took a zillion pics of sheep today. Hopefully I will pick one for my logo for my business. Tomorrow, I will see the dogs and see whatever I didn't get to see today, and leave early. The drawing for the Majacraft wheel is at 1500, but they will phone me when I win (see, I am being positive!) so I needn't stay for the drawing. Enjoy the sights!